Best typ of cars to buy (in my opinion)

- Original, Unrestored
- Very low original mileage (15k or less)
- Always taken care of / stored dry inside
- The less it had seen a mechanic, the better
- Ideally from an older person that wasn't driving much
- Looks like stated above & can be proofed
- Pre excessive electronics and computers at all
- Basically one year old car condition

Just thought about this today when i was working on my 69 charger r/t.
Its a nice original survivor with 90k miles (that i can proof) but still far away from perfect.
Things like

- The passenger door has been poorly repainted
- The radiator isn't original
- The fan shroud was missing and does not fit the aftermarkt radiator so adapters had to be made
- Fan clutch was not stock and broken (Replaced it recently)
- Looks like somebody already messed with the wiring harness
-- Wiring harness shows typical signs of wear for 90k miles use
-- clock and temperature gauge currently not working
- Heater core has been bypassed and probably needs to be replaced
- Not sure about A/C but probably needs to be fixed also (R12 has been removed by customs in germany, anyway)
- Transmission bangs (late) into 3rd gear, looks like the linkages aren't connected/adjusted right, hopefully just that

So while it still is a nice car with no serious rust, not been in a wreck, numbers matching, great options and overall "base" condition,
it still is far away from perfect or "take anywhere with confidence" condition. It still needs some work.

I also think 99% high dollar completely concours restored cars WONT be turn key either.
Crappy restoration parts these days and then lot of "restorers" doing crappy work...
These probably often turn out to be an expensive nightmare. (I think jay leno once said he has to redo almost any restored car he buys)

Buddy bought a 1990 Lincoln Mark VII that currently has about 13k original miles. (Has never sat for decades, but driven only sparingly)
Except for some electrical problems (that's why i said pre excessive electronics and computers) he had zero problems with it.
He just performed a big, normal service (fluids, brakes etc.) and that was it.
(If you followed one of my other threads the nailing sound was just because it was low on oil and the dipstick wasn't telling correctly.
He was very lucky since there seems to be no follow up damage.)

So obviously finding a car like this is very difficult and it is probably even more expensive than a completely restored one.
But in my opinion, if you want the most worry free and best car there is, this is the way to go.

I would like to find a Porche Targa 911 like this

Michael_ said:

- Original, Unrestored
- Very low original mileage (15k or less)
- Always taken care of / stored dry inside
- The less it had seen a mechanic, the better

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Aren't YOU the one who's letting mechanics install an additional hazard flasher in a 69 car?? And then cry about a messed up wiring harness and poor repairs. Laughter of the day!

In my opinion, the best vehicle to buy is the one you really want (your dream car) highly optioned That's in your budget. And then never sell it.

Cars that meet your "best car to buy" criteria are still going to have lots of issues and will need to be gone through thoroughly. All the wiring is probably going to be crumbling, rubber hoses, belts etc will all be old and ready to break, the list goes on.
These are 50 year old cars. Things will go wrong and will need to be fixed regardless. I went through my whole car over a period of 4 years and it hasn't let me down once in 3 years. I know every inch of it, and keep on top of the maintenance. Who cares if you have an aftermarket radiator as long as it's a good brand and cools properly. Mine actually is the original, but has been re-cored so it's a bit like grandpa's ax. Everyone probably wants a very low mileage car, dry stored etc but apart from being very rare, we all have budgets too. I think your just stating the obvious, but with little regard to the real world.

Best car to buy in terms of classics is when its cheaper because it needs mechanical work, but limited body work or rust repair. That was mine when I got it was a great project. It's "done" but never quite done I still enjoy working on it.

Buy the car you truly desire. So much easier to pay for something you want verses something you don t much care for.......

mine literally came from an old lady in southern colorado with a little detached garage the original wiring harness is in great shape

bandit67 said:

Buy the car you truly desire. So much easier to pay for something you want verses something you don t much care for.......

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I wholeheartedly agree with this statement. I have bought and sold so many cars that I "thought" I would like but found out I didn't and the worst thing is to not care for a car because you don't care for a car. (read that twice) I just sell them and move on looking forever for the "best type of car" for me. It drives my wife nuts and I should probably just get dealer plates to save money on registrations.

RGAZ

Looking at the earlier posts, I agree it is a good deal to buy a car that doesn’t need much, and someone else’s restoration may prove to have its own set of issues. Baby Blue, my ‘68 440 GTX is not a survivor in the sense of low miles, original paint, interior, etc. She is faded, but was was meticulously maintained by every one of her seven owners, and has given me no issues in 16 years of ownership. Numbers matching, original sheet metal. I looked at history more than miles or shiny paint with each of my six GTXs over the last five decades, and it's served me well.

Buy the car that you've always wanted and unless you live in the garage as I do (wife is very understanding) hire an expert to evaluate the car first. Don't buy on passion alone!

One you can afford...

Super Rob said:

Aren't YOU the one who's letting mechanics install an additional hazard flasher in a 69 car?? And then cry about a messed up wiring harness and poor repairs. Laughter of the day!

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They did this WITHOUT my approval. We never even talked about this.
I learned my lesson there for sure...

66 Sat said:

Cars that meet your "best car to buy" criteria are still going to have lots of issues and will need to be gone through thoroughly. All the wiring is probably going to be crumbling, rubber hoses, belts etc will all be old and ready to break, the list goes on.
These are 50 year old cars. Things will go wrong and will need to be fixed regardless.

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That's what you always read and i also believed for a long time.
But the car my buddy bought tells a different story so far...

Didn't tyler hoover from hoovies garage buy a 90s camaro that was sitting and also did not really need all that much?

So OP just exactly how many of those "survivors" do you think are laying around in some old ladies garage waiting to be discovered and bought worth the $$!?
Mopar and old car people want perfecta and they want it for cheap.
Projects are too high and for sale by crack heads. Pretty much.
The restored cars people want, the seller paid some resto shop $80,000 to do a $40,000 car.
The Mopar buyer buys a car that he spend weeks running down and talking down the price, and soon as he gets it home, all of a sudden it worth twice what he paid and its perfect and the seller was an idiot!

Think of it like women. You want to find a 50 year old with no kids, no ex-husband, doesn't drink or smoke, hasn't been in the sun much, no plastic surgery, no tattoos, a virgin or hasn't been "ridden" much, and you expect her to be able to bang like a barn door in the wind...
Good luck in your search.

Probably next to zero any desirable B-Body cars meeting that criteria. Maybe a few slant six ones?

Best bet for an old Mopar is an upper end C-body like an Imperial or fully decked out New Yorker. Expensive when new and probably owned by a responsible person/family that lived a sedate life in a nice section of town.

We’ve had forum chats on this before. Some will do the entire resto themselves, some will do some or a lot of it themselves having others do some of the work, and others want to find a car to drive it, or pay somebody to do the resto. The costs elevate appreciably as the 1st sentence goes. I have close to $40k in my car doing most of the grunt work and I’d maybe get half this if I’d sell it. The parts that add up costing money can be easy to overlook…until going through all the receipts (excluding those lost in my case). My resto took years doing it piecemeal as time allowed. I’ve got around 200 photos of my car throughout much of its restoration (sadly about 10 from my 1st one before camera phones).

Some say, I agree with, ya don’t put your blood, sweat, busted knuckles (and cash) into the car you’re looking to build they way YOU want it to hope you’ll make a profit come time you might want to part with it. Then consider those who are looking for a cherry old ride they don’t want to bust their knuckles on, don’t know a lot on working on cars, but have cash to buy.

It is a crapshoot to buy a restored car, or purported pristine survivor, that looks great, without a very close and knowledgeable look see. Paint can hide a whole lot as does an engine that looks clean. If you find a car that has its restoration well documented, photos, etc. THIS is a car to maybe buy – at least what would catch my interest. I’ve looked at a few. Bargains can be had as many of these cars are not the ultra-rare #’s matching, well-rare-optioned rides unless maybe cloned. In all my years, I’ve come to think buying a ride like this is smart…no B,S,T’s, that the seller did, or paid for, and odds are paying less than what it cost to make it as it is. Just IMO – observations.

Ron H said:

If you find a car that has its restoration well documented, photos, etc. THIS is a car to maybe buy

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I agree but cars restored RIGHT are also very rare.

DeltaV said:

Probably next to zero any desirable B-Body cars meeting that criteria. Maybe a few slant six ones?

Best bet for an old Mopar is an upper end C-body like an Imperial or fully decked out New Yorker. Expensive when new and probably owned by a responsible person/family that lived a sedate life in a nice section of town.

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I've had a couple of these. Best Mopars I ever owned, and as stated, incredible bang for the buck. I made money on the two Imperials I owned, and drove the daylights out of them. I've also owned a couple GTXs like this, one still in my garage, but I think the day of buying anything like that for less than 50K has passed.

66 Sat said:

Think of it like women. You want to find a 50 year old with no kids, no ex-husband, doesn't drink or smoke, hasn't been in the sun much, no plastic surgery, no tattoos, a virgin or hasn't been "ridden" much, and you expect her to be able to bang like a barn door in the wind...
Good luck in your search.

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I met one like this at my high school reunion. She has a boyfriend with two numbers matching big block mid 60s Corvettes. He appreciates my GTXs. Contingency plan if I outlive the other players. They are out there, but the stars have to align perfectly for things to happen. And the kicker, my wife thinks she's terrific.